Saint-Gobain has completed its sale of Verallia North America (VNA) to Ardagh for a reported US$1.69 billion.
The proposed deal was first announced in January 2013, but was delayed due to competition concerns raised by the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC).
The originally proposed agreement would have resulted in the newly combined Ardagh/Saint-Gobain and the already dominant O-I controlling a vast majority share of the US glass beverage market.
For example, these two companies would have controlled approximately 85% of the US glass container market for brewers.
To satisfy the concerns of the FTC, Ardagh will sell six former Anchor Glass plants to an affiliate of KPS Capital Partners, a private equity fund manager.
Ardagh previously acquired Anchor Glass, in 2012 for €720 million.
Once Ardagh has completed its acquisition of VNA and the sale of the six former Anchor plants, its North America glass division will generate estimated annual revenues of US$2 billion (€1.4bn). The division will operate from 16 glass manufacturing facilities across the US, employing 5,000 people.
Globally, Ardagh will now operate from over 100 locations in 24 countries.
The transaction is set to reduce Saint-Gobain's net debt by €925 million (US$1.28 billion), and will allow the French group to focus on its strategy of expanding its position in high-performance materials and building distribution in the US market.
